United States v. Harry F. Larson, M.D.

Before BARNES and ELY, Circuit Judges, and EAST, District Judge.

Dr. Harry F. Larson, an M.D. licensed to practice medicine in California, was convicted of nine substantive counts of distributing a controlled substance in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1) *and of conspiracy to violate 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1) as proscribed by 21 U.S.C. § 846 .

I. Sufficiency of the Evidence

Dr. Larson’s principal argument on appeal questions the sufficiency of the evidence. He urges that because of the absence of expert medical testimony the government failed to carry its burden of proof that the prescriptions written by Dr. Larson were issued without a legitimate medical purpose, and not in the usual course of his professional practice.

The' regulation ( 21 C.F.R. § 806.04 (a) ) issued pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 829 (a) and (b) exempts medical practitioners from the prohibitions of 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1) by allowing a practitioner to issue a prescription “for a legitimate medical purpose,” and “in the usual course of his professional practice.” On appeal we must review all the evidence and all the reasonable inferences that are to be drawn therefrom, in a light most favorable to the…